Are you preparing to run an important meeting at work? Or perhaps you’re going to be participating in one and want to make sure you can ensure its efficiency? Whatever your role, an upcoming meeting can be stressful, but there are plenty of things you can do to make the most of it. Here are some of our top tips:

Good timekeeping

Set a very specific start and end time, as time pressure will keep the discussion focused. If you’re running the meeting, make sure to show up 5-10 minutes early so that you can ensure everything is prepared and that any computers or projectors you may be using are working properly. And as a participant, it goes without saying you should make sure you show up on time!

Agenda and follow-up

It’s important to email an agenda 24 hours in advance of the meeting so all participants are aware of what is to be discussed and can prepare accordingly; this also means that as a recipient of the agenda you should study it carefully! Equally crucial is the follow up email within the next 24 hours to state clearly what was established in the meeting and any further action that needs to be taken.

Challenge ideas, not people

As an active contributor to the discussion you shouldn’t be afraid to question others’ suggestions, even those of your superiors; remember that silence is an admission of agreement. What you need to be careful of is that you are non confrontational about this, and keep your objections purely related to the ideas rather than the people they belong to! In other words: disagree without being disagreeable.

Be prepared physically

Make sure you’ve had a good night’s sleep beforehand and have eaten properly; you’ll find it significantly more difficult to concentrate on an empty stomach or if you’re sleepy. Also, make sure you have all the materials you might need, like pen and paper or laptop, and that your phone is set to do not disturb, as endless buzzing and noises are an irritating distraction.

Share all relevant information, and only relevant information

As the person responsible for running the meeting, it is your duty to provide all the relevant details and data to allow for informed decision making. As a participant, you should avoid side conversations and comments that distract from the focus of the meeting. Of course it’s nice to catch up with colleagues, but you should save that for a coffee after the meeting, when you’ll also be able to have a proper chat rather than just sharing snippets here and there.

Encourage participation

If someone doesn’t seem to be participating as much as they should be, whether they’re shy or uninterested, you can do your best to engage them in the discussion. Ask them directly for their opinion on a topic; after all if they’ve been invited to the meeting there’s probably a good reason and they have some interesting ideas to add.

So there you have some simple ways to make your meetings effective and efficient. A final piece of advice we can give you is to relax! You now have all the tools at your disposal, and stressing unnecessarily is counterproductive. If you enjoyed reading this blog, you can find more of the same here, or if you’re looking for a job in the Paris area, consult our offers now.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past 10 years, you’ve probably heard a fair bit about the professional social network Linkedin. Its success has changed the working world in many positive ways, allowing us to stay in touch with other professionals and network from the comfort of our desk. But the area most fundamentally affected by the rise of Linkedin has to be that of recruitment, with a vast majority of employers now reporting that they have recruited someone via the online platform.

Outside of Linkedin, the most common way of recruiting for mid to high level experience positions is through head-hunters and search firms. These professionals have a database of potential candidates at their fingertips and are constantly scouting for new talent. This means that when a new position becomes available, the head-hunter can match a potential candidate to the post and act as a mediator between company and employee. The ever-growing usage of Linkedin means that more and more of this personal information stored in headhunter databases is publically available, and so employers are increasingly choosing to recruit independently in this way. But is this a good thing?

Sure, it’s an incredible feat that Linkedin have achieved. Employers now have a seemingly infinite pool of candidates at their disposal, which means that they’re bound to find the right person for the job, right? Not necessarily. Employers choosing to recruit in this way are missing out on the personalised filtration of candidates provided by head-hunters. Admittedly, there are filters available on Linkedin that will allow you to select based upon level of education, experience, amongst other factors, but what is lacking is the human aspect. Linkedin cannot tell you whether a candidate is willing to move for a new opportunity, or whether they are interested in working in the relevant sector. A head-hunter would already know this information before presenting the company with potential candidates, thus preventing time wasted pursuing candidates who were never going to be interested in the first place.

For candidates too, the prevalence of Linkedin based recruitment can pose a problem. With recruiters, candidates only have to have one conversation about their professional goals, flexibility, desired salary etc. whereas when recruitment is done directly between individuals and companies, the candidates are obliged to repeat the same information each time they speak to a new company, often without any results.

Recruitment services provide a personal touch to the whole process. Naturally, a human can understand you and your needs, be you a candidate or an employer, much better than a simple Linkedin search can. Technology is encroaching on a variety of sectors of work, but recruitment is not yet ready for this takeover; it is to be resisted if we want efficient, personalised recruitment rather than a quick fix that ultimately doesn’t work.

If you enjoyed this blog, you can read more of the same here, and why not try out a recruitment service yourself? Take a look at our offers and send us your CV today!

The job market is as competitive as ever, and when applying for a post you could be up against any number of highly qualified candidates. Sometimes you may think you performed excellently in interview, only to find someone else was offered the job, leaving you asking yourself what sets people apart in a crowd all vying for the same job. Not to worry; we at TM have a great deal of experience in what makes a good candidate, and although requirements of course vary from post to post, there are some golden rules to go by:

A good CV

The importance of this cannot be stressed enough. They say first impressions count, and for the vast majority of job applications your CV will be the first thing the employer sees. Luckily for you, some simple superficial tweaks will help you get noticed. Of course the usual advice of making sure everything is clearly presented on one or two sides of A4 applies here, and an additional tip is to place the most important information in the top middle section of the page, where the eye naturally falls first. If you’re stuck, ask someone who has experience in CV selection to take a look at yours and polish it up.

Relevant experience

This goes hand in hand with a good CV, and is also extremely variable based on the post you’re applying for. It’s not enough to simply have the experience, you have to know how to present in correctly on your CV and relate it to the job applied for in the interview. If you’re lacking in experience directly relevant to the post, or if it’s your first job, you can consider how your other experience and qualifications taught you transferrable skills that will make you more attractive.

Reactivity

Make sure you’re available and responsive when making interview plans. Get email alerts on your phone or make sure you’re by a computer so that you can reply promptly, and if it all possible prioritise the interview over other plans.

Presentation

This one is so simple and yet so many can get it wrong! Make sure you’re clean and wearing something simple and professional when you arrive for interview; the level of formality will depend on the company, but as a general rule leave the jeans and t-shirt at home. Also, this isn’t the time to make any bold fashion statements, play it safe with something classic and understated.

Good etiquette at interview

This means showing up at the right time, preferably around 5 minutes before the interview is due to start. Don’t worry too much if you’re 5 or 10 minutes late, interviewers understand that problems can arise with transport etc., but under no circumstances should you show up early! It can be quite irritating as your interviewer may well have something planned beforehand. In addition, make sure you remember your basic manners, like standing up to shake your interviewers hand and good eye contact.

These are just some of the simpler steps you take to increase your chances of success when applying for a job, and now you know all of this, why not take a look at our offers and send an application in now? And if you enjoyed this and would like to read more of the same, head over to our blog now.

For those looking to achieve complete fluency in a foreign language, there really is only one option and that is to move abroad. For some languages this is fairly straight forward; if you’re learning Italian, clearly you’ll be headed to Italy and the choice lies simply in which city to live in. For English, the options are decidedly more complex, with 65 countries and territories across the world having English as an official language, but two of the major options that emerge are the UK and the US. Having been frequently described as ‘two countries separated by one language’, you would do well to consider the relative cultural and linguistic differences between the two when planning a move, and so we have compiled some of the most important ones for you here:

Linguistic differences

Color or colour? Sidewalk or pavement? Elevator or lift? The vocabulary, spelling, style of speech, and accent differ greatly between these two countries. Americans tend to see British speech as quaint; conjuring up images of afternoon tea and crumpets with the queen, whereas Brits are fairly used to American English due to the prevalence of US media in the cinemas and on TV. This one will depend more on your personal preferences and what you’re accustomed to.

Humour

Differences here lie well beyond the spelling of the word (Americans carelessly omit the u!) with British humour tending to be darker and more sarcastic than its American counterpart, leading many Americans to perceive us as mean-spirited. Honestly, we’re nicer than we seem! American humour, on the other hand, is direct and seems too ‘obvious’ to the British.

Positivity

You can expect a lot more outward positivity should you decide to cross the pond, whereas the British like a good moan. This all makes up part of the British humour, which is known for its self-deprecatory nature, so don’t take grumbles about the weather too seriously, we’re actually quite happy with life and this is just a way of making conversation!

Openness

Americans are very open to sharing personal details about themselves from the outset, whereas the British are arguably calmer and more reserved on first meeting. Of course you will be able to make close friendships in both countries; just the approach to social situations and relationships varies; the British do open up, just give it a little time.

Tipping

Certainly one you should consider if you like eating out; the tipping culture in America is strong, with a tip of around 10% being considered the absolute minimum. Waiting staff depend on these tips due to low wages, whereas in the UK minimum wages are higher, which means that you’re not always obliged to tip, especially as a young person or student.

Size

In the US, bigger is better, and that goes for just about everything. Cars, houses, streets, food… Whatever you can think of, it’s probably double the size in the states. This means you’ll have more space at home of course, but it also means that the distance you travel to work or school is likely to be longer… And you can forget walking; it’s just not something you do in America!

It can be difficult to generalise with any country, particularly one as large as the US, where attitudes can vary drastically from one area to the next, but hopefully some of these overriding tendencies can help you to decide which would be a better fit for your personality. Then again, maybe you’ll choose to go for another Anglophone country like Ireland, Australia or even New Zealand! If you enjoyed reading this, you can find more of the same here, and if you’re looking for a job as a bilingual assistant in Paris, take a look at our offers now!

When learning a foreign language, it’s all too easy to get bogged down in tired, traditional learning methods such as flashcards or dusty grammar books. Of course, vocabulary and grammar are integral to language learning, and you’ll undoubtedly have to put in some hard work in these areas, but that doesn’t mean it has to be endless drudgery. Language learning can, and should, be fun. You’re much more likely to retain information that you learnt whilst enjoying yourself. There are a whole host of methods you can try; here are just a few of them:

Dubs and translations of familiar material

Strictly speaking, it’s probably best for you to watch and read content produced in your target language to further your cultural understanding. That being said, a dub of your favourite film or TV series can be a really effective way to boost your language skills. Think about it; you already know the story and therefore don’t need to worry about missing crucial plot details due to gaps in your language, and you’re bound to pick up new vocabulary naturally and effortlessly as you already know what everyone is talking about.

Browse the internet in your target language

How long do you spend each day procrastinating online? Why not turn this time into a valuable learning opportunity by visiting your favourite sites in the language you’re learning? Buzzfeed, for example, offers a version of its site in a variety of languages, so now you can take personality tests in French and call it productive!

Sticky notes

People might think that you’re a little insane when they come to visit a house plastered with sticky notes, but labelling household objects in your target language is a great way to learn vocabulary. You’ll see the word again and again without any conscious effort on your part, allowing you to avoid endless piles of flashcards.

Make friends with native speakers

This is the perfect solution, you get to relax and have fun with your friends all the while practising your language! It might seem a little daunting, and at first it can be exhausting to have to express yourself in a foreign language all the time, but if you manage to meet kind (and patient!) people you can build lasting friendships and will have a more concrete motivation for learning the language.

Keep a journal in the language

If you already keep a journal, why not switch it to the language you’re learning? You don’t have to feel embarrassed about mistakes you’re making as it’s strictly private, and you’ll find yourself needing to look up new words all the time, thus expanding your vocabulary. What’s more, you can look back on earlier entries and cringe at your old mistakes, whilst feeling smug about how far you’ve come!

Foreign language music

Take a look at the top charts in a country that speaks your target language, there’s sure to be something that suits your taste. You’ll learn to associate the words to the tunes and will be much more likely to remember them as a result, and it’ll give you common ground to talk about with natives. Even if you’re struggling to distinguish words, it’s a good way of familiarising yourself to the sounds of the language.

So don’t despair, learning a language can actually be quite enjoyable. Mix up some of your more traditional study methods with these fun techniques and you’ll find yourself progressing without even noticing. If you enjoyed reading this blog, you can find more of the same here, and don’t forget to consult our job offers for bilingual secretaries in Paris.

Paris itself may always be a good idea, but not all ideas in Paris are good ones! Whether you’re planning on moving to Paris or simply visiting for the weekend, there are certain things you should be aware of in order to fully enjoy your experience. Here are some of our ‘dos and don’ts’ when you’re in the French capital:

Don’t fall into the trap of taking the métro everywhere. Of course, the métro is a wonderful invention that makes everyone’s lives a lot easier, and on a day to day basis it is indispensible. However, this doesn’t stop it being quite an unpleasant place to spend your time, what with the throngs of stressed commuters and confused tourists, and the questionable lingering odours. Do make the most of Paris and stroll through its picturesque streets. This is such a famous activity that it sprouted its own verb ‘flâner’, meaning to wander aimlessly, which is intrinsically tied up with images of Parisian boulevards.

Don’t set your heart on one location when house hunting. Sure, you’ve always imagined yourself in a little Haussmannien flat nestled in Saint-Germain, but depending on your budget and availability the reality might be quite different. Do be open minded and explore some different areas, for each corner of Paris has its own charms, be it the shabby chic of Belleville or the polished façades of the 16th arrondissement.

Do take advantage of Paris’ café culture, where your espresso buys you the right to linger for as long as you please whilst taking in the scenes around you. After all, there is no better place to people watch than in Paris. But don’t forget your basic politesse with those serving you, a simple bonjour and s’il vous plait goes a long way with the Parisians, who will return the favour and maybe even treat you with a smile!

Do make sure you visit the typical tourist spots; they are famous for a reason, after all. Notre dame is undeniably impressive, and few things compare to the view from the steps of le Sacré Coeur. However, don’t spend absolutely all of your time hanging around Montmartre and the Champs Elysées – Paris has a wealth of hidden gems just waiting to be discovered in its more offbeat neighbourhoods such as the Canal St. Martin.

Don’t buy everything in supermarkets; you’d be insane to miss out on Paris’ many food markets, which, on top of providing delicious fresh produce, are much kinder on your wallet. What’s more, they’re a perfect opportunity to practise your French whilst discovering a little more about French gastronomie by having a chat with your fromager. Le marché des enfants rouges, tucked away in a quiet corner of le marais, comes highly recommended for groceries and street food alike.

Speaking of food, do enjoy being in the culinary capital of the world! From haute cuisine in one of Paris’ many Michelin starred restaurants to a simple yet delicious baguette from the humble boulangerie, you’ll never go hungry in this foodie’s haven.

So now you know how to go about your Parisian adventure! It’s not hard to enjoy yourself in this wonderful city if you keep your wits about you. If you enjoyed reading this, you can find more of the same here, and don’t forget to consult our job offers for bilingual assistants in the Paris area.

You can spend hours, days and weeks on end studying verb tables, revising nuanced uses of the subjunctive and rifling through vocabulary flash cards, but there is a kind of cultural language that you simply cannot learn through traditional book learning. This is the system of gestures, formalities and behaviours unique to each individual culture. How are you to know, for example, that in China a bow is a much more accepted form of greeting than a handshake without interacting with Chinese people? Admittedly you can learn the simpler aspects through reading about them, but to develop a true ‘cultural fluency’ direct experience is necessary. Here are some interesting, funny and sometimes baffling customs from across the globe:

Les bises

Although a kiss on the cheek as a greeting is fairly common in many cultures, this is a prospect that terrifies Brits and other Northern Europeans venturing south, who would much sooner settle for the safe distance of a handshake. The situation is particularly complicated in France, where the number of kisses you give depends on which region you find yourself in – just take a look at this map:

The Italian ‘squillo’

Imagine yourself in Italy and you receive a one ring phone call from an Italian friend. The natural reaction of most would be to call this person back, which is in fact the entirely wrong thing to do, and will leave your Italian friend slightly taken aback. What you just received was a squillo, Italian for ring, and a new cultural phenomenon whereby you are expected interpret the meaning of the call from the context rather than answering. This could be “I’m running a bit late” or “I got your message” or perhaps simply “I miss you”.

Exchanging business cards in Asia

In many East Asian cultures the business card holds an almost spiritual significance. Your card should be printed in both English and the relevant Asian language, with the host country language side presented face up. Remember to accept business cards with both hands and to spend an inordinate amount of time examining it as if you suspect it may contain explosives – proper consideration of a business card is a sign of respect.

Gestures

Gestures are a complete minefield when travelling internationally, so be very careful. The widely accepted ‘ok’ symbol (thumb and index finger together) is considered rude in Brazil, and curling your index finger towards you in a ‘come here’ gesture can be mistaken for a goodbye in Southern Europe. For those travelling to Bulgaria, take note that to the Bulgarians a head nod confusingly means ‘no’ and shaking the head side to side means ‘yes’.

English apologies

Perhaps the most vexing of all these international customs is the British tendency to apologise for absolutely everything, also shared by their Canadian cousins. Perhaps it’s just reflex, but the English will even apologise when you step on their feet on a crowded tube, leaving foreigners utterly perplexed. This apology should not be taken entirely seriously and is simply a way of diffusing an otherwise awkward situation.

As you can see, sometimes vocabulary and grammar is not enough, and some of these customs can be the hardest part of living abroad to master, given that our own are so ingrained in our psyche. Don’t worry about slipping up though, people understand that you’re a foreigner and that these things can take time, and misunderstandings like this always make for funny stories! If you enjoyed reading this, you can find more of the same here, and don’t forget to take a look at our job offers for bilingual assistants in Paris.